Investigation-Budget and FinanceCourt Decision Could Spur Prison ReformMonday, May 23rd, 2011 MAY 23, 2011 By JOHN SEILER Today's U.S. Supreme Court decision mandating California state prison reductions must lead to long-needed reforms. The decision upheld a lower court ruling that from 38,000 to 46,000 must be released due to overcrowding that violated the Eight Amendment's ban on "cr... May Revise Blows $6.6 B Tax WindfallMonday, May 16th, 2011 MAY 16, 2011 By JOHN SEILER Call it Government Math. In his January budget proposal for fiscal 2011-12, Gov. Jerry Brown insisted on $12 billion in yearly tax increases to help close a $25 billion budget deficit. Today, in his May Revise to the budget, he announced that the state will enjoy $6... Inflation Means California DefaultFriday, April 29th, 2011 APRIL 29, 2011 By WAYNE LUSVARDI A March 24 Los Angeles Times-USC opinion poll indicated that 80 percent of likely California voters favored putting a cap on state spending. That is a remarkable statistic that didn’t make the original headline in the Times about the results of the poll. ... Adachi Pushes New S.F. Pension ReformMonday, March 28th, 2011 MARCH 28, 2011 By DAVE ROBERTS Jeff Adachi, San Francisco's elected public defender, is a modern-day Don Quixote tilting at unionized windmills while singing "To Dream the Impossible Pension Reform Dream." The self-described progressive dared to take on that city's powerful unions last year wi... Silicon Valley Flunks 6 ‘Killer App’ TestsMonday, March 14th, 2011 MARCH 14, 2011 BY WAYNE LUSVARDI Last month with Silicon Valley elites, President Obama raised a glass of wine to toast the area's success. He was repairing his self-damaged image with big business. But a symbolic Sword of Damocles hovered over the meeting. Apple Computer employs 30,000 ... CPUC Floats $3.4 Billion Green Water TaxFriday, March 4th, 2011 MARCH 4, 2011 BY WAYNE LUSVARDI Call it the Green Water Tax. It's a proposal advanced in a White Paper on the Web site of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to impose a $3.4 billion surcharge on the energy-related costs to pump and treat water. The new surcharge -- effectively ... Pensions Before The Poor!Monday, February 28th, 2011 FEB. 28, 2011 By TROY ANDERSON For years, officials in California have used accounting gimmicks, stimulus funds and the state credit card to keep the safety net intact. But experts say the state may have run out of tricks. Facing a $25 billion state budget shortfall, Gov. Jerry Brown has... Courts’ 2-Billion-Buck IT BustTuesday, February 22nd, 2011 FEB. 22, 2011 By KATY GRIMES While courtrooms across the state are being closed, courthouse employees furloughed and criminal and civil cases taking record time to come to trial, the Administrative Office of the Courts refuses to halt the implementation of a $1.9 billion computer system. After... Pensions May Be ‘Touchable’Friday, February 11th, 2011 FEB. 11, 2011 By TROY ANDERSON The prevailing wisdom holds that existing public pensions – once converted into Cadillac plans – can’t be turned back into Oldsmobiles. For decades, union officials have repeated the mantra that government agencies can’t modify or reduce pension... End Redevelopment ‘Luxury’?Monday, January 31st, 2011 JAN. 31, 2011 By WAYNE LUSVARDI We live in a virtual age of images that sometimes doesn’t reflect reality. Redevelopment agencies across the state are blitzing newspapers with online images of a group of elderly persons in a senior citizen housing project watching TV that purportedly wou... |